Afghanistan-Taliban Crisis LIVE Updates: Over 18,000 people evacuated since August 15 from Kabul airport, says NATO official

Afghanistan-Taliban Crisis LIVE Updates | US focused on potential for terrorist attack by Taliban foes, says security adviser

The U.S. government is "laser focused” on the potential for a terrorist attack in Afghanistan by a group like ISIS-K, a sworn enemy of the Taliban, White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan told NBC Nightly News on Thursday. Sullivan told the NBC program that getting Americans out of Afghanistan was ”a risky operation” given questions about whether the Taliban would continue to allow the safe passage of people to the airport and other contingencies such as possible attack by an Islamist group such as ISIS-K.

”One of the contingencies we are very focused on, laser focused on, is the potential for a terrorist attack by a group like ISIS-K, which of course is a sworn enemy of the Taliban, so we will keep working to minimize the risks and maximize the number of people on planes,” Sullivan said. U.S. officials say they are working around the clock to evacuate Americans and those who aided U.S. forces out of Kabul, but that the security situation on the ground is challenging given the presence of groups like ISIS-K. Sullivan told NBC it was unclear exactly how many Americans were still in the country, but the Biden administration is committed to getting any American who wants to leave and gets in contact with U.S. officials onto a plane.

Afghanistan-Taliban Crisis LIVE Updates | Over 18,000 people evacuated since August 15 from Kabul airport: NATO official

More than 18,000 people have been evacuated from Kabul airport since the Taliban took over the Afghanistan capital, a NATO official told Reuters on Friday. However, crowds continued to throng outside the airport, desperate to flee, said the official, who declined to be identified. The Taliban took over Kabul on Sunday.

Afghanistan-Taliban Crisis LIVE Updates | Taliban call on Afghan imams to urge unity at Friday prayers

The Taliban urged Afghan imams to try to counter negative reports about the movement and persuade people not to try to flee the country ahead of the first Friday prayers since the dramatic seizure of Kabul on Sunday. In a message on Thursday as disorderly crowds continued to wait outside Kabul airport for flights out of the country, the Taliban said it hoped all imams in Kabul and the provinces would promote the benefits of the Islamic system and urge unity.

Afghanistan-Taliban Crisis LIVE Updates | Nearly 7000 people evacuated so far, says Army Major General William Taylor

Armed U.S. fighter jets have flown over Kabul to ensure security for the evacuation operation there, the Pentagon said on Thursday. Pentagon spokesman John Kirby told a news briefing said the jets had not conducted "low pass" flights over the city but had been engaged in "overwatch."

Army Major General William Taylor said multiple gates at Kabul international airport were now open and about 7,000 people have been evacuated so far. He said the military now has more than 5,200 troops at Kabul airport to guard the evacuation. 

Afghanistan-Taliban Crisis LIVE Updates | Taliban spokesman says China can contribute to Afghanistan's development: Report

Afghan Taliban spokesperson Suhail Shaheen said on Thursday China could contribute to the development of Afghanistan in the future, Chinese state media reported. Suhail Shaheen made the remark in an interview with China's state CGTN television, it said.

Afghanistan-Taliban Crisis LIVE Updates | Afghan delegation visiting Pakistan pitch for inclusive govt in Afghanistan

An Afghan delegation visiting Pakistan on Thursday called for the formation of an inclusive government through a power-sharing deal with all stakeholders in the war-torn country that has been taken over by the Taliban insurgents. The delegation’s visit to Pakistan coincided with the fall of Kabul when the Taliban took over Afghanistan’s capital after 20 years on August 15.

Comprising Speaker Wolesi Jirga Mir Rehman Rehmani, Salahud din Rabbani and former Afghan vice president Mohammad Yunus Qanooni among others, the delegation met top civil and military leadership including Prime Minister Imran Khan, Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi, Army Chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa, and chief of Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) Lt. General Faiz Hameed

Hello and welcome to Moneycontrol's LIVE coverage of the Afghanistan-Taliban Crisis.

The Taliban took control of Afghanistan two weeks before the US was set to complete withdrawal of its troops after a two-decade war.

Stay tuned to this LIVE blog for the latest updates through the day.